


Mom? It’s Your Son

by strawberrylovely



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, Canon Gay Character, Coming Out, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mom’s Eyes Only Zine, Mother’s Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-07
Updated: 2019-09-07
Packaged: 2020-08-23 12:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20243020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberrylovely/pseuds/strawberrylovely
Summary: Mrs. Shirogane loved her son. There was never any doubt about that. He was her pride and joy, and nothing could ever change that. Even when he called her at weird times of the day.





	Mom? It’s Your Son

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this in Shiro’s mother’s perspective of what may have gone down when he came out to her <3 I hope you enjoy!
> 
> I wrote this fic for the Mom’s Eyes Only Zine and it was supposed to come out on Mother’s day. They're working on getting the zine out after a bit of a fiasco, but I’m proud of this fic and I wanted it to be seen and I don't know when they're going to release us to post, so I’m posting it now. I might get in trouble for this but whatever lmao

Mrs. Shirogane loved her son. There was never any doubt about that. When he was little, she would rock him to sleep, whispering her hopes for him to grow healthy and strong. In grade school, she always supported him in whatever he did, attending events and driving him to weekend practices. She taught him to always follow his dreams and cheered him on from the sidelines, encouraging him to get back up whenever he fell.

When he said he wanted to go to America to attend the Galaxy Garrison, she helped him study for his entrance exams late into the night. She checked the mail every day until the letter came with his results, and when he was too nervous to open it himself, she read his acceptance aloud and cried with him in celebration. She even drove him to the airport when it was time for him to go, and hugged him tight until he couldn’t breathe.

He was her pride and joy, and nothing could ever change that.

Even when he called her at weird times of the day.

Mrs. Shirogane had just sat down in the living room to have her afternoon tea. The sun was burning its last few hours of daylight in from the window as she looked out to her garden. She was just bringing up her mug to take a sip when she heard the house phone ringing from the kitchen.

She stood from her chair, wondering who could be calling at that time of the day. Mr. Shirogane was still at work, so she knew it couldn’t have been him. And Takashi wasn’t scheduled to call until late in the evening. But to her surprise, as she picked up the phone, she saw that the caller ID spelled out her son’s name.

“Hello? Shiro?”

“ _ Okaa-san _ ,” she heard from the other line. It made her smile, hearing her son’s voice. Especially so unexpectedly. But the shaky breath that followed worried her as she finally calculated the time.

“It’s nearly 3am over there, Takashi. Why aren’t you sleeping?” she asked, setting her teacup down on the kitchen counter.

The response was another slow, uneasy breath in, followed only by a sigh. Mrs. Shirogane was never one to panic, but part of her wondered if she should start packing a bag for America.

“ _ Musuko _ ?”

“I’m here, mama. I’m sorry, I- I needed to call you,” Shiro said quietly. “I know it’s late, I just have something to tell you.”

He sounded tired, both physically and emotionally. Was the Garrison working him too hard? Was someone hurting him? Did he want to come home?

“I don’t want you to think any differently of me, okay?” He cut off her worrying thoughts before they could go further. “Um, I just need to tell you that I… I-I’m still the same person I’ve always been. And I love you. And  _ Otou-san _ .”

“We love you, too,” the woman said. Her son had never been one to keep secrets, and even when he did something wrong, it never took him this long to say what he needed to. But this, she could tell this was something entirely different. “What is it, Takashi? Are you in trouble?”

“No, I…”

His voice cracked and Mrs. Shirogane finally heard it. Her son was crying.

It wasn’t often that Shiro cried in front of her. Even though they were close, he always tried to be happy and cheerful to keep a smile on her face, so there were only a few times since childhood she had actually witnessed it. But it was always something serious. The last time she’d seen it was when her father had died, and Takashi was inconsolable at the funeral. And the time before that, he’d had a terrible fight with one of his dearest friends and it left him so heartbroken.

As she let her son cry, she could feel that overwhelming sense of urgency seeping through the phone, fidgety hands trying to find somewhere to rest, to anchor him as the waves of his own anxiousness crashed around him. She wished she could alleviate it for him, but this, whatever it was, was something he had to come to terms with first.

A quiet sob left his throat and she could tell he was trying to hold it in, to be strong even though he was breaking. She ached for her son not knowing what was hurting him, but she knew that, deep inside, something was weighing down on his heart. So she prepared for the worst.

“Takashi, I love you no matter what, you know that?” she asked, holding both hands to the receiver. If she could be there, hugging him instead, she would. “You can tell me, whatever it is. Nothing could ever change my love for you.”

The silence that followed lingered over the line. For a minute, the only thing that could be heard was the slow and steady breaths of Shiro trying to calm himself. Mrs. Shirogane closed her eyes, as she imagined he’d do the same, trying to block out the rest of the world while they listened to each other breathing quietly through the phone.

“I… I’m gay, mama.”

The statement was so soft, so broken, just barely loud enough for her to hear.

“What?” she asked, furrowing her eyebrows towards the phone.

“I’m sorry,” Takashi choked out. “I didn’t want to keep it a secret anymore. I know that I let  you down, I hope you can forgive me. I don’t know why but I- I like men. Not women. I’ve tried, I really have, but it’s… I’m sorry, mama. I’m gay-”

“I know.”

“W… What?”

“I already know you’re gay,” Mrs. Shirogane said, a bit puzzled at Shiro’s admittance.

“…You already knew?” he sniffled, the grief in his voice beginning to ease. “How did you find out?”

“You’re my son, I know who you are,” she smiled. “I’ve always known.”

“And you’re… not mad?”

“Oh, Takashi.” She leaned her hip against the counter, slightly relieved he wasn’t sitting in a jail cell somewhere and this was his ‘one phone call.’ “Why would I be mad?”

“I don’t know.”

Shiro paused, the sound of his bed creaking through the phone as she heard him sit down.

“I’m sorry,” came his muffled reply.

“No, don’t be sorry. Don’t ever be sorry for who you are.” Her hands tightened around the receiver. She could feel her own eyes beginning to water. “Takashi, every night I pray for you to find a family of your own. Whatever kind of family you want. I don’t care who you decide to marry, I just want you to be happy.”

She willed the phone to carry her words to him. To let him know it was okay to breathe. To touch his heart and let him smile. And as Shiro spoke again, she could hear the faint upturn of his lips. 

“I want that, too. But I also know you wanted grandchildren,” he said, a bit sheepishly.

“Well, you can adopt. I’m not picky.”

Her words made him laugh, his first true moment of happiness since she picked up the phone shining through to her, even from so far away.

“Thank you, mom,” he said, his own relief apparent in his voice. “Um. Don’t tell dad yet, okay? I’ll tell him. I’d like to.”

“Of course,” she said, dabbing away a stray tear with the edge of her sleeve. “Just remember that he loves you. And Shiro?”

“Yes, mama?”

“Thank you for telling me. I know it wasn’t easy, but you are so strong and brave for overcoming your fear. I’m proud of you and the man you have become. I wish I could be there to hug you tight, but know that I love you and I am so glad I get to be your mother.”

“I love you, too.”

He let out a breath, one she knew he’d been holding since before he even dialed the number to call. Her cheek rested against the phone, smile pressed to the mouthpiece as she blew a kiss through the phone, as if it was Shiro’s forehead in front of her instead of thousands of miles away.

“Now, get to bed! It’s late!” she called, standing straight and picking up her mug.

“Alright, alright,” Shiro said. His voice was happier, lighter than it had been ten minutes ago, but he still yawned as he said, “Goodnight, mom. Talk to you later.”

“Goodnight.”

The phone clicked off from the other end, and she put it back into the base. She took a sip, but grimaced as her lips met with the room temperature liquid. Her tea had cooled off, the steam no longer rising from inside.

“Oh, well,” she sighed to herself, turning the kettle back on to make another cup. 

As she waited, she thought of the phone call with Shiro, how happy she felt knowing he no longer had to carry around doubt and worry. She’d always been scared as he grew up, of him struggling to fit in or not finding people to accept him, but she realized she couldn’t fight every battle for him. She couldn’t make people love him the way she did, unconditionally. There were some things he had to face on his own. But at least she could ease that fear inside his heart for a little while. And she couldn’t wait to meet the wonderful man he’d bring home to her someday — as long as he made Takashi happy, that’s all that mattered.

Because Mrs. Shirogane loved her son. There was never any doubt about that.

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you enjoyed this little fic, and if so please leave me a kudos and a comment telling me how it made you feel!!! <3 thank you so much, stay groovy 💙


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